Giordano Ferrari museum or puppets castle

Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday from 10.00am to 5.00pm; Saturday, Sunday and festivities from 10.30am to 6.30pm. Closed on Tuesday, 25 December and 1st January.

Prices:

Free entrance.An audioguide is available for the visit, in italian, english and french, the price is euros 2,00.

Description:

the museum Giordano Ferrari or Castle of puppets is the most important collection in Italy dedicated to the animation theatre. About 2842 pieces, between puppets, marionettes, heads, 637 stage objects, scenery, pictures and posters, 438 scripts (more of them manuscripts), a specific library about figurative theatre and paper archives.

The tour starts from Italo Ferrari's puppets, supported by the puppets of the masters who influenced his artistic training: Preti and Campogalliani. Then there is a kind of monograph dedicated to the Ferrari family, puppets masters for 4 generations, who created a real style either in the sculpture of pieces and in the mixture of music and representation.

Going on visitors can see puppets linked to the main Italian traditions and marionettes owned to the main Italian companies of the first half of 1900, followed by modern pieces: in this room come together papier-mâché materials, puppets used with the technique on black background and gifts received; there is also a little story of puppets and marionettes which were born as toys. The last room is dedicated to the puppets from European and Oriental countries; the tour ends with an homage to the Opera dei Pupi, pupi are particular puppets from the South of Italy tradition, from Sicily and Naples, and some scenery and posters of the Opera. A special area is dedicated to Gruppo '80 that includes Uan.From 17 December 2011 new opening with a renewed exhibition in which, besides the puppets and marionettes that belonged to the great italian families of the animated theatre, a lot of space will be dedicated to foreign companies and Eastern traditions.